...Steve Irwin was reported killed by a stingray barb that pierced his chest...

I'm sure it'll take some time to find out whether the "heart" thing is accurate.

Well, how he bought it is unimportant, really.

Even though Irwin was widely ridiculed for his style (I asked an Australian acquaintance about him, who said he thought Irwin behaved like an idiot), it's sad to see another popularizer of science bite the dust. Sure, the guy was no Attenborough, and the incident with his kid wasn't particularly wise (especially from a PR point-of-view), but he was still out there, in public, trying to get people interested.

So, my hat's off to Steve Irwin. The world is worse off with him gone.

His website still responds to pings, so I would agree Dave, it looks like a flood of visitors.

At least he lived his life to the fullest. Not many people say they did things like he did.

Why continue? Because we must. Because we have the call. Because it is nobler to fight for rationality without winning than to give up in the face of continued defeats. Because whatever true progress humanity makes is through the rationality of the occasional individual and because any one individual we may win for the cause may do more for humanity than a hundred thousand who hug their superstitions to their breast.

While I wasn't a particularly huge fan of his style, it is very difficult to criticise his enthusiasm and passion for what he did. As an Australian I find some of his show a bit cringe-worthy, but not because of the animals. However, he did a damn good job of raising awareness and/or interest in wildlife. Crikey indeed.

It's a telling indicator of the world we live in (or at least the media forms that I frequent) that my initial reaction to the first report of this (not at SFN) was "hoax". Sadly, this was not to be the case.

How the hell do you get hit in the chest by a stingray?! I wonder what species it was and how he came upon it.

Irwin was far too reckless, but even so...... that's weird.

In the chest? Ye gods! The vast majority of stingray injuries, including one of my own, are in the foot or lower leg. He must have been 'playing' with it. And it must have been a pretty big one to have penetrated clear to the heart.

I and many others in the hot herp community actively disliked him. Although highly skilled and knowledgeable, he acted like an idiot and that reflected upon the rest of us. Never the less, this is a great loss to all who love wildlife.

"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)

"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres

"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude

How the hell do you get hit in the chest by a stingray?! I wonder what species it was and how he came upon it.

Irwin was far too reckless, but even so...... that's weird.

In the chest? Ye gods! The vast majority of stingray injuries, including one of my own, are in the foot or lower leg. He must have been 'playing' with it. And it must have been a pretty big one to have penetrated clear to the heart.

I and many others in the hot herp community actively disliked him. Although highly skilled and knowledgeable, he acted like an idiot and that reflected upon the rest of us. Never the less, this is a great loss to all who love wildlife.

When you are swimming next to it while filming a documentary about the dangerous critters around the Great Barrier Reef and bump into it.

My condolences go out to Terri, his wife and their two children, but this was a real Roy Horn white tiger moment.

It was a freakish way to die, but quick. Always thought the croc would get him. The world has lost a real zoologist and entertainer. I place the zoology first because through his works, it was obvious that he did.

Cthulhu/Asmodeus when you're tired of voting for the lesser of two evils

Freak accident unrelated to the filming. He happened to swim over it and startle it. Usually it would have just been a painful injury. They keep saying it hit his heart but it could have hit his aorta or some other large vessel as well.

A lot of people are unfairly IMO making the same comment as you Dude. A lot of his death defying stuff was fake. It was hype for the show. I posted a bit on JREF about the causes of accidental death and we all take greater risks daily just getting in the car.

Freak accident unrelated to the filming. He happened to swim over it and startle it. Usually it would have just been a painful injury. They keep saying it hit his heart but it could have hit his aorta or some other large vessel as well.

A lot of people are unfairly IMO making the same comment as you Dude. A lot of his death defying stuff was fake. It was hype for the show. I posted a bit on JREF about the causes of accidental death and we all take greater risks daily just getting in the car.

Actually, it seems he was filming at the time, and the accident itself was even caught on film!

quote:

. . .

Wildlife documentary maker Ben Cropp, citing a colleague who saw footage of the attack, told Time.com that Irwin had accidentally boxed the stingray in. "It stopped and twisted and threw up its tail with the spike, and it caught him in the chest," said Cropp. "It's a defensive thing. It's like being stabbed with a dirty dagger." (Read the TIME.com obituary.external link)

Irwin was pulled from the water by a cameraman and boat crewman. He died as he was being rushed to a nearby island for emergency treatment. Attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.

. . .

[Edited to add my emphasis to the quote, and to add substantive words to my comment.]

“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMoonerHere's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive.

quote:A lot of people are unfairly IMO making the same comment as you Dude.

Unfairly?

Give me a fucking break.

You grab a venomous snake enough times, and you will get bit.

You stalk up to large predators and eventually one of them is going to hurt you.

You jump in the water with alligators and eventually one of them is going to kill you.

His style of interaction with wild animals was for the shock value. It made him a successful entertainer. It was also very risky. Yeah, a lot of it was staged. Which is the only reason he lived to see 44, imo. Alot of it was also him grabbing the bull by the horns, so to speak. (or the snake by the tail, or the aligator by the tail, etc)

Does that mean I don't admire the work he did for conservation? Hell no. I also think it sucks that he died. I liked him, despite my disagreement with his physical interation with dangerous wild animals, and the world has lost an imortant advocate for conservation efforts.

But my criticism isn't unfair.

To compare Irwin's style of interaction to the risk of driving a car is idiotic.

Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.-- Thomas Jefferson

"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin

Hope, n.The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth

Perhaps you could have said all that instead of just "INEVITABLE" which made it sound like you were waiting for it to happen...

Why continue? Because we must. Because we have the call. Because it is nobler to fight for rationality without winning than to give up in the face of continued defeats. Because whatever true progress humanity makes is through the rationality of the occasional individual and because any one individual we may win for the cause may do more for humanity than a hundred thousand who hug their superstitions to their breast.

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